January electricity sales slide 3.7%

Electricity sales by the nation’s 10 regional utilities fell 3.7 percent to 80.77 billion kwh in January, marking the 11th consecutive month of decline since the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, an industry body said Friday.

The year-on-year decline was credited to power-saving efforts by businesses and households, the Federation of Electric Power Companies said.

Total sales to large-lot industrial users fell 5.2 percent to 21.62 billion kwh, also shrinking for an 11th consecutive month.

Kansai Electric Power Co., which asked customers in December to reduce winter electricity use, logged a 6.2 percent fall to 13.14 billion kwh, setting a record drop for January.